Mohammad first explores his world in the footsteps of his mother, Pargol, victim of the bazaar’s harshness and disease;
next through his brother’s child bride, Feredeh, bound by ancient religious tradition; and by the suffering of the harlot,
Leila, shackled by hunger into a life that has few options.
He experiences life within the dark, liquid eyes of his first love, Sherine, forced by the solemn promise of her father
to marry another; through his wife, the beautiful Amira, driven by gold and lust for one she cannot have; and from the pain
of the little servant girl, Batool, imprisoned by her society and left with only one choice – to buy her disgrace in the murky
waters of the jewb.
Although disillusioned by the unfairness and cruelty that reign in his world, Mohammad is determined not to give up. His
journey finally leads him to the widowed village weaver, Najmeh, who brings real meaning to his life. Filled with love and
compassion, yet free and unbound as the shifting desert sands that surround her village, she answers only to herself. But
will Mohammad find the strength to break the bonds that bind him? He knows he must.